The spider of the month is this lady beetle orb weaver (Paraplectana sp.) in the family Araneidae.
Leonie Kellermann photographed this spider in a garden in Pietersburg during a course on macro photography. She used a point-and-shoot camera, but she hopes to soon purchase a DSLR camera with a macro lens.
Other than that they mimic lady beetles (or ladybugs, ladybirds, whatever), I can’t really say much about them, because they are rare spiders that only occur in Asia and Africa, and very little is known about them. So far (to my knowledge), only two species have been recorded in SA, but there are probably a few undescribed species. To date, in the whole world, there are only 12 species.
This was another clear win, and this spider got twice the votes of the runner-up, probably because it’s a rare spider, and because most people haven’t even heard of these spiders.
Thanks, Leonie Kellermann! We hope to soon see what you can do with a macro lens!